Welcome to this Yoga Nidra session.
In this session we will allow ourselves to fully rest.
We will place our attention on different parts of the body in order to take our attention off of our thoughts and our to-do lists.
By placing your attention on the body and on the sensations in it,
You are directing your awareness away from the future and away from the past and allowing yourself to be fully here in this moment,
Which will make you feel more grounded and more at ease.
So please come find a comfortable position lying down on your back,
Allowing your whole body to be fully supported.
Take a moment to adjust anything you need,
A pillow under your knees,
A blanket,
To make sure you're completely comfortable.
Let your arms rest gently by your sides,
Palms facing up and close your eyes.
Now allow yourself to be fully present in this moment,
Stepping away from the need to think about anything,
Allowing your body to be fully relaxed.
See if there is any part of the body that you can relax just a little bit more.
Loosening the jaw,
Softening the chest and the belly.
Now let's take a deep breath in through the nose together,
Filling the belly,
The chest,
The throat.
And a long easy breath out.
And with that exhale,
Let your whole body melt just a little bit more into the surface beneath you.
If you'd like,
You can set an intention for this practice.
Something like,
I allow my body to rest.
Or anything else that comes to mind.
And if nothing comes,
That's perfectly fine too.
Just let yourself be carried by the practice.
Now begin to feel the back of your body resting on the surface beneath you.
Noticing the weight of your body.
And with every breath out,
Sink just a little bit deeper into the support beneath you.
Every exhale,
An extra softening,
An extra release.
Now we will place our attention on different parts of the body,
One by one.
This practice is intentionally slow and it can feel boring at times.
See if you can allow yourself to feel that boredom,
Without distracting yourself,
Without feeling frustrated about it.
Just follow my instructions.
And see if you can become really curious about your body and the sensations in it.
This curiosity will take you beyond boredom.
It will take you into the present moment.
And your body will thank you for it.
So let's begin by placing your attention on your right hand.
Noticing the right thumb,
Index finger,
Middle finger,
Ring finger and little finger.
And notice the sensations that are present here.
What do you notice?
Do you notice any warmth or coolness?
Do you notice a heaviness or lightness?
Do you notice some tension?
Or are the muscles relaxed?
There is no need to change anything.
It is perfect the way it is.
Just notice.
Just be a silent witness.
Noticing the back of the hand.
What do you notice?
The palm of the hand.
The wrist.
The right forearm.
Elbow.
Upper arm.
The right shoulder.
Notice the sensations that are present here.
Now shift your attention to the right collarbone.
The right side of the chest.
The right waist.
Right hip.
The thigh.
Knee.
Shin.
Notice what is present here.
Shifting your attention to the ankle.
The heel.
The sole of the foot.
The top of the foot.
The right big toe.
The second toe.
The third.
Fourth.
And the little toe.
Let the whole right side of the body become soft and deeply relaxed.
Heavy.
Now shift your attention to the left hand.
Noticing the left thumb.
Index finger.
Middle finger.
Ring finger.
And little finger.
Noticing the back of the left hand.
The palm of the hand.
The wrist.
Forearm.
Elbow.
Upper arm.
And the left shoulder.
See if you can become really curious about the sensations in the left side of your body.
Can you allow yourself to move past the boredom?
Past the monotony of this exercise?
When your awareness is fully focused on your body,
You are not focused on your thoughts.
Not focused on anything you need to do or think about.
It is your mind that takes you into the future,
Worrying about what is to come or overthinking what has already happened.
And it is your body that is always in the present moment,
Because it doesn't know how to be anywhere else.
This is why we feel so peaceful and at ease when we are focused on our body.
Focusing on the body.
Now shift your attention to the left collarbone.
Noticing the sensations here.
Shifting to the left side of your chest.
The left waist.
The hip.
The thigh.
Knee.
The left shin.
Noticing the sensations in the ankle.
The heel.
The sole of the foot.
Top of the foot.
The left big toe.
Second toe.
Third toe.
Fourth toe.
And the fifth toe.
Allow the whole left side of your body to be relaxed and at ease.
Allow it to be heavy.
Now bring your awareness to the back of the body.
Noticing the points of contact with the floor.
The back of the head.
The shoulder blades.
The mid back.
Lower back.
The sacrum.
Back of the hips.
And the bum.
Back of the legs.
And the heels.
Really tuning into the sensations of lying on your back.
Allowing your body to be heavy and to melt into the support beneath you.
Let's stay here for a few breaths and with every exhale allow yourself to melt just a little bit deeper into the ground.
Into the earth.
Allowing yourself to be held.
The ground literally has your back right now.
Now shift your attention to the front of the body.
Noticing the sensations in the forehead.
The cheeks.
The jaw.
Neck.
Collarbones.
Noticing the chest.
The ribs.
The belly.
Noticing the pelvis.
The back.
The front of the legs.
The knees.
And the tops of the feet.
Allowing the whole front of the body to soften.
Now feel your whole body at once.
Completely held.
Completely supported.
And completely at rest because you allowed it to.
Now begin to bring your awareness to the breath.
Just noticing the sensations of breathing.
The rise and fall of the belly and chest.
The coolness of the inhale.
The warmth of the exhale.
Noticing the breath like a tide coming in and falling out.
As you inhale,
Feel the expansion.
And as you exhale,
Feel the release.
Every breath is carrying fresh energy for your body.
And every breath out allows you to release what no longer serves you.
Every breath in refreshes the mind like a cool breeze passing through.
Every breath out makes the body a little heavier.
A little softer.
And brings it a little deeper into rest.
You are floating between wakefulness and sleep.
The most regenerative place for you to heal and recharge.
Let's stay here for a few moments.
Simply enjoying the ease and beauty of this moment.
Now slowly begin to deepen your breath.
Noticing the rise and fall of the belly.
Feeling the surface beneath you.
The weight of your body.
Becoming aware of the room you're in.
And any sounds in it.
There is no rush at all.
Just take your time getting back.
Slowly begin to bring small movements back into the body.
Wiggling the fingers and the toes.
Circling the wrists.
And the ankles.
Maybe stretch if it feels nice.
Now slowly bend your knees and roll over to your favorite side.
Stay here for a few breaths.
Slowly getting back.
And when it feels right,
Press yourself up to a seated position.
Keeping the eyes closed for just a moment.
Take this moment to thank yourself for choosing this time to nurture yourself.
To take care of yourself.
To let yourself rest.
And notice how you feel right now.
Thank you so much for practicing with me today.
And I hope to see you again tomorrow.
Have a wonderful rest of your day.
